Danielle and I had a much more active weekend than usual. To tell you the truth, we usually spend a lot more time at home than kids our age ought to.

Friday night we did stay home and watched Hollywood Homicide via Netflix. What a grave mistake that was. I actually felt the need to apologize to Danielle for putting it on the list. Should have checked the Tomatometer first. 29% - pretty dismal. Oh well. Live and learn.

Saturday we went out to run errands. I started buying Christmas presents, beating last year's shopping spree by about twenty days.

It's December, so that also means buying more things for me. It's great to give and receive all at the same time. Actually, this is my last chance to make personal business investments that I can write off come April, so I'm trying to think of everything I might need before January One rolls around. I decided it was time to spruce up the home office a little bit. I hate the hutch that is on my desk, so I'm going for some alternative storage and organizational solutions. I bought a two-drawer file that matches my desk and fits underneath quite nicely. I bought a elegant halogen desk lamp. I threw out a whole bunch of clutter. We're going for a clean, professional, Queer-Eye look, if you will.

My office chair is also falling apart. I bought it not long after I first moved to Stockton five years ago, so I definitely got my money's worth out of the old one. I found a nice-looking chair at OfficeMax for only $129. The label claimed that the chair was genuine leather, but somehow it neglected to mention that it was also genuine crap. After assembling the chair, it was clear that not everything lined up like it was supposed to. The back of the chair looked askew. Danielle helped me try to unscrew some pieces and make adjustments, but the more I fiddled with it, the looser all the bolts got. I managed to strip most the threads using only the tiny hex wrench included with the hardware.

It's a lost cause. We're returning it.

But other than that, the office renovtation project is coming along nicely. Without the hutch, my workspace feels so much less cluttered. Now I'd like to put up some little shelves where the hutch was, but I want to find the kind that have no visible brackets. I don't know where to get those kind of shelves. I also need some art. But sadly, I can't write that off. Well, maybe I can if I see clients in my office. Which I have.

While I was doing my office project, Danielle took on the whole rest of the apartment. When that girl decides to do something, she does it one hundred ten percent. And despite "one hundred ten percent" being hyperbolic and mathematically implausible -- she actually accomplishes it. After a half-day's work, the apartment is looking nicer than ever.